Amtrak ticket stubs for round trip train reservations and bike reservations.

This past weekend I took a trip up to Portland from Eugene with my bike. I really appreciate the fact that I can bring my bike on the train, as it gives me the choice to do whatever I like when I arrive at Union Station. Upon arrival, one can bike to the nearest bus line to get home, go to Powell's for the newest read, or relax at a nearby café. At any rate, the fact that Amtrak permits bikes on board does wonders for a visitor's experience in the Rose City.

As a pretty much monthly visitor to Portland, surprisingly enough, this past weekend marks the first time I have brought a bike on board. Accordingly, I've given some thought to how bikes on Amtrak trains fit the Portland goal of diverse travel options. In short, "choices." If you offer citizens choices in terms of their travel options, the more likely they will make a different choice than insisting on riding alone in their cars. Be it train, light rail, bus or bike, Portlanders get around. Amtrak's inclusion of bicycles on board increases the number of choices people can make upon arriving to town as to where and when they want to go. Accordingly, I've written a brief list of ideas and suggestions in light of my trip that might make arriving "from train with bike" that much more desirable and convenient.

1. Improve ticketing of bicycles upon purchase. The decision to bring my bike from Eugene to Portland came after I had already bought my ticket north. For me to add my bike to my reservation, I had to cancel my previous ticket and be charged an extra $10 dollars on top of the ticket price to bring my bike roundtrip. Days after, I was reimbursed for the initial transaction. The easier we make it easy for “leisure riders” to make reservations for their bikes on the fly, without needing reimbursement of previous Amtrak fares, the more accessible trains will be and the more popular the prospect of riding one’s bike at one’s destination.
2. Standardize bike boarding information, waver forms and tagging. On Saturday morning, I arrived at Eugene Station to wait in line for the appropriate ticketing to bring my bike on board. To bring your bike you need to sign a form acknowledging that Amtrak has no liability for potential damage that may occur on your trip. After signing, I received a carbon copy of the form explaining the terms of agreement along with a tag for my bike. On the return from Portland, I was given a perforated form to perform the same task. The text was easier to read and more intuitive as it looked like it was printed off the same printing system as my tickets. The tag ripped off the form to be hung on my handlebars. Regardless of the differences in waver forms and bike tags, the actual round tickets, four in all (two for the fare and two for the bikes) looked the same. It would great to bring this sort of standardization to the bikes on board. Lastly, at the end of my ride to Portland, I wasn’t required to give proof that my bike belonged to me, whereas after arriving in Eugene I was required to give the other part of the ticket I received before boarding. To sum it up, Amtrak needs to be better with making a more seamless system for transporting bikes, especially when it comes to showing proof that a bike belongs to a certain individual.
3. Increase the capacity for bicycles on board. A quick call to Amtrak revealed that trains the Amtrak Cascade line only have capacity for six bikes, that is, six bike hooks to hang bikes if they are not already taken. I imagine more bikes could be accommodated if brought in boxes, but boxing your bike for less than a two-day stint in Portland doesn’t make sense. If Amtrak and Portland got together to find away to accommodate more bike hooks on trains, this could potential decrease the demand for rental cars, taking more cars of the road and encouraging visitors to see Portland and its neighborhoods on two wheels. To put this point into perspective, if I wanted to come to Portland with a group of friends to participate in the Bridge Pedal this coming weekend, and we all brought our bikes, then everyone else would be sweet out of luck. If we started off in Vancouver B.C., we would essentially take up all available bike parking for passengers boarding in Washington.

So there you have it. It would be great if people could suggest ways to make some of these suggestions happen. I was sure to send in these comments on the cards that were provided on the train, but more people pushing for better access to Amtrak's trains with bikes will surely make for a better case. You can leave your comments online here. And if you are post prone, (word on the street is you can get a ticket for a free drink on Cascade trains if you send them a comment) you can send your comments to:

Washington State
Department of Transportation
Rail Office
P.O. Box 47407
Olympia, WA 98599-7407

With the coming Winter Olympics in Vancouver, not to mention the fact that people just want to bring their bikes on board, it's important that we work to increase bike capacity on Amtrak as well as streamline current policies towards our two-wheeled friends. I also see this as a potential improvement that could come of Washington and Oregon's application for stimulus funds to update the Cascade line's crossings and aging infrastructure. If we're set on making the riding the train a viable transportation option, it's important that we make it viable for all users, those with and sans vélo. The more bikes at Union Station, the more money in the Portland's, and not to mention the Pacific Northwest's economy.

The Oregonian rose their daily's price to $1 at the beginning of July. Would you even buy this if Palin wasn't on the cover? Oh, what news!

I read a lot of Portland news. Each day I try to keep up with the latest happenings of the "Rose City" while reading the online weeklies, including the Portland Tribune, Willamette Week and the Portland Mercury. The Oregonian, the state's flagship newspaper, (with the most dreadful-looking website of any major publication I know) has fallen off of my "must read" list as of late. Beyond the more traditional media I, as any college student would, frequent local blogs.

My favorite blogs include Bike Portland and Portland Transport, two blogs dedicated to transportation issues in the Portland Metro Area. I've been an alternative transportation reader since my formative years in high school when I volunteered on the board of the Hillsdale Neighborhood Association. Watching livable communities organize and thrive is something I take much interest in and hope to pursue on the career level someday.

My career aspirations aside, I fear that the traditional media is loosing (if not having already completely lost) its relevance. With my blog reading, I have taken to reading authors that have specialized knowledge in their respective fields that offer professional analysis that Joe the Editor just can't showcase, much less produce. I would argue that when it comes to livability, or any issue for that matter, the media has the duty to inform and inspire those to take action.

Your run-of-the-mill hipster, Congressman Earl Blumenauer.

Yesterday, over at Bike Portland, blog editor Jonathan Maus brought to my attention to an Oregonian opinion piece titled "The bike as a fashion accessory." The "story" consisted of a writer frustrated with the Portland hipster set that does nothing but ride their bikes all day, and when not riding, making sure to be seen with them walking down the sidewalk. Interesting premise, if this were at all news. Yes, we have hipsters, big deal. But is it really only the hipsters that walk their bike down the sidewalk? Is this news anyway? Is this at all informing or inspiring coverage of the goings on in Bridge City? The answer to each of these questions is a resounding "no."

That's why, as mentioned in a previous post, my family ended our subscription to the Oregonian. I ended up only wanting the subscription to read the moderately enjoyable "inPortland" section in Thursday's paper, but came to realize that the majority of the Oregonian's opinions are not worth the forests sacrificed to print them. What had before resulted in month-mounds of Oregonians, resulted in several trips to the recycling cart. And a'bloggin' I go!

You can read more about my thoughts on Portland publications and blogs on the PDXmedia page.

When I was growing up in Southwest Portland, I never rode my bike. The hilly terrain and long distances, in addition to roads lacking adequate shoulders, made biking a difficult and dangerous activity. Nonetheless, there are some people who make biking in Southwest feasible. David Keller, a fellow alum from Wilson High School now attends Portland State University (PSU). He commutes daily from his humble Multnomah Village condo, deep in Southwest. I caught up with him on Facebook to get a sense of his love for biking, Portland's urban pastime.

PDXme: Describe yourself. Who are you and what do you do?

I'm David Keller. I'm a full time student majoring in international business / marketing at PSU. I like helping the environment and enjoying it as much as possible. I love being outside in general.

PDXme: What kinds of bikes do you own?

I own a road bike with gears, a fixed gear bike, and a mini bike that I use when I zoobomb. My fixed gear was the first bike I bought last summer that got me into serious riding. I've been riding that since, and I just recently became interested gears. Just in April I found the bike that an old neighbor had passed on to me in 1997. I decided to make it my new commuter down to PSU. Riding that, I ended up fixing it up and modifying it, so there are almost no original parts left.

PDXme: What got you into biking? How about commuting?

David: I got into biking a few different ways. When I bought the fixed gear bike last summer, I got into fun riding and taking it out for a day ride almost to just call it a hobby. Recently with the road bike (gears), I've found myself making biking a serious part of my life. Riding to school 5 days a week has only made me more into it. Having no other option, I commute in the sun, rain, cold, sleet, you name it. I can beat the bus, so there is no reason to take it. Riding to school also got me into farther rides and pushing myself. I did a few rides along the Spring Water Corridor, which is a bike path that starts near OMSI in SE, and is a 40 mile loop out towards Gresham and then back to town. Similar to this, is the ride out to Sauvie's Island. It is a satisfying ride where you get to relax on the beach when you're halfway done. I also did the Reach the Beach this year, which is a 103 mile bike ride from Portland to Pacific City in support of the America Lung Association of Oregon. It was an unbelievable ride and it makes me want to participate in serious rides more often.

PDXme: Describe your average commute. What do you like the best about it? What could you do without?

David: My normal commute is 5 miles downtown and 5 miles back. Nothing major, but I get to rage downtown because it's downhill and then I get a workout on the way back. I really like riding in the rain, even though my shoes get soaked. I could do without crazy drivers on Barbur Blvd. though. It's the quickest way to get downtown and there are some crazy people who drive it. I've almost been slammed into on multiple occasions. But I can't let that stop me. Just another thing to think about every time I jump on my bike.

PDXme: You mentioned that you like to fix up other people's bikes. To what extent have you worked on a bike?

David: I do like to fix bikes. I like to build up bikes. I can take a bike apart and put it back together no problem. I'm actually looking into starting a new project soon. So I'm constantly looking around for something to do.

PDXme: How about Southwest? What do you think could be done to improve biking in the area?

David: In SW specifically, it would be nice to have bike lanes everywhere (or at least on major roads). On parts of Barbur, Beaverton Hillsdale Highway, and tons of other major streets, no specific bike lane exists. Mostly I have to ride on the shoulder, which is normally rocky, bumpy, and has glass everywhere. Especially on Barbur, there's parts where the bike lane goes away, and bikers are forced to ride in the road. People drive really fast there, and it makes for a bit of a rush.

PDXme: What do you hope Portland will do to help make biking in Portland more feasible/easier?

David: To make biking in Portland easier, I think the green box idea should be incorporated in other places outside of the downtown area. just being able to cut to the front of traffic, and having an area where you know cars can't hit you takes a bit of tension off. A lot of drivers don't like cyclists, so it helps to have a safety zone at every light. Besides that, Portland is pretty bike friendly already. Luckily I'm fortunate enough to live here.

PDXme: To what end do you think you'll be cycling? Do you want to continue riding your bike to get around when you are older?

David: I'll continue riding until I lose my legs. I really like cycling, and it's such a great way to stay in shape, I can see myself biking until I'm an old man. It's too great to ever give up.

Bike Corral at Mississippi & Beech

In an evening jaunt up North Mississippi Avenue in 2007, I came across this bike corral on North Beech.  I was able to take a good shot of it in spite of the drizzly weather.

So now that bike corrals are appearing in greater numbers (as seen on this map), why don't we expand this concept of efficiency by creating spaces for bikes that celebrate bicycling instead of placing them on the margins of roads? I would argue that taking bikes off of the side-walk is good for pedestrians, but it is at a relative cost to bicycles. Bicycles, like cars, have an air of freedom about them. When they are regulated by parking structures, they seem to lose a bit of their appeal. This is obvious if you drive a car. God knows how long you wait to get into and out of a parking garage in the Rose Quarter. With bikes, the appeal is similar, but there is something to say about finding a real gem of a vélo on display in a standard sidewalk lock-up. When we regulate people and things to certain rights of way, we sacrifice "something," and I think that lacking "something" is community.

A classy lady on N. Mississippi

A blue bike near N. Mississippi & Fremont

Communities in Portland are, in a word, resilient. We like our meetings. Our neighborhood association are among the most vibrant  in the nation with relatively high political influence. Why would their be a Facebook Application pertaining solely to which Portland neighborhood one should live in? As seen with the creation of City Repair, a non-profit dedicated to the creation of public gathering spaces, Portlanders like to shape their communities, each leaving his or her own mark on our city. In one project, community members came together to perform an "intersection repair." The community found its strengths among it, finding carpenters, painters, and good-willed neighbors willing to help. As a result, the community created a space for all to enjoy and changed city-wide policy for the use of public spaces. The reclaiming of "public" space is however, just the first step. Once we recreate an intersection, a vacant lot, it's important that we keep using the reclaimed space.

Now, you might be wondering, don't we want bike corrals? Of course. Walking along North Mississippi and seeing 10-20 bikes all in a row excites anyone crazy for bikes. (And that's a fair number of people here in River City.) Bike corrals are visible, but I'd like them so visible as to take up the underutilized space that cars could do away with at no expense to the driver. Case in point: traffic circles. What goes in the middle of a traffic circle? Usually plants. But often, this patch of green is left to members of the neighborhood to maintain. What if we could use traffic circles to their full potential, designating them as covered bike corrals? Only this time they would be accessible to bicyclists looking for bike parking from four directions, and visible to everyone. No longer will bikes, and the concerns of its bikers be left at the margin, but at the center of attention. Here is a sketch that I created with the help of my friend to give you a better idea of what I envision.

A Traffic Circle is made into a bike corral, a more efficient use of space.

Notice what you see (beyond horrible drawing skills). You see people. Bike corrals create people flow, the lifeblood of any livable community. But what we have in the middle of the intersection is a space that citizens hold dear, a place where bikers can leave their wheels. But why stop there? The space could be a covered meeting place for cyclists, or people waiting for a ride. Creating an "X" in order to access the space creates a uniqueness to the intersection that slows drivers down. Forcing pedestrians to walk through the space insures that watchful eyes maintain and keep an eye out for the space.

If one of these were to be placed on a corner with local restaurants or bookstores, I could imagine people waiting for the table in the middle of this neighborhood street, or kicking back with a book.

The engineering of such an intersection could be difficult. To make more space  in the center, there may need to be bowl cuts in the curves, as illustrated in the sketch. There is also the safety component. What about speeders? We could place speed bumps before the stop signs (which, I judged to hard to draw here) and additional reflectors around the gazebo-like bike corral. Steel posts around the structure are a must to protect people and bikes in the space. The fire department may have something to say about this, but lest we mention our prized statue of Joan d'Arc at NE 39th and Glisan? As long as this intersection an important emergency route, I couldn't see an issue.

Latin American countries often call a block the Spanish manzana, or apple. An intersection like this is at the edge of several blocks, or several apples. Sliced apple anyone? Perhaps some apple pie? These may be some names in the running for this proposed intersection. To my knowledge, I do not know if anything of  similar exists. Large scale roundabouts are, of course, commonplace in larger cities such as Columbus Circle in New York or the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.

Columbus Circle in New York

Arc de Triomph in Paris © Editions Hazan

I am excited at the prospect of bringing more bike corrals to Portland. As we work through this down economy, its important that we work to support our local economy, and bike corrals, as seen in the video above, do just that.

This proposed intersection works to engender community and, as my economic professor would say, "an efficient use of resources." I want to talk to my neighbors again, and I want to be a part of my own community, not a drone behind a piece of metal.

At the end of the day, I believe Portland has a choice. We have the ability to change our cityscape to reflect the purpose of where we live: as a space amenable to community and human needs, not of machines out of scale with their surroundings.

So on your next jaunt up Mississippi, remember, apple pie!